Full Spectrum Security Initiative

Enterprises are struggling on a daily basis to deal with a mobile workforce requiring constant connectivity to corporate resources from anywhere and everywhere. This workforce uses whatever network is available including wired and wireless inside the enterprise, hotel and off-site broadband and wireless, commercial wireless hot spots, and home networks. The hardened edge around the corporate network has long since disappeared with the proliferation of both internal wireless networks and mobile workers who return after visiting an unknown and unprotected set of external networks. An array of emerging technologies holds out the promise of secure safe access to the enterprise, protecting networks at the point of entry, be it wired or wireless.

The InteropNet Labs Full Spectrum Security Initiative will investigate two basic questions. How do you get on the network (network access), and how do you stay safe once you are there (firewall, IDS, etc)? Or possibly more important, what are the interactions between all of these various security technologies and solutions? The key standards for network access include WPA-2/IEEE 802.11i, IEEE 802.1X, EAP, and RADIUS. A number of emerging Network Admission Control (NAC) solutions are building upon these technologies, expanding the criteria for network access to include checks such as current virus definition files and prohibited executables. Standardization in this area is in its infancy and proprietary solutions abound. And once you've secured your infrastructure, how do you incorporate new technologies, e.g. IEEE 802.16, into your existing framework, and how do you manage or monitor this diverse infrastructure?

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Open Source Software Initiative

The number of applications and implementations available as Open Source are increasing rapidly and more and more enterprises are deploying Open Source software as a major part of their network. Some of the cost benefits are obvious, however, locating and implementing the software needed, as well as testing for quality and interoperability is often a challenge. The Open Source Software initiative will implement, test and demonstrate a full suite of Open Source applications including routing, security, voice, video, collaboration applications and seveal others. Furthermore we will show the wide range of different options available for some of these application and how they interoperate. Finally we will test and demonstrate how these open source applications interoperate and coexist with products from some of the largest vendors in the networking industry as well as the other iLabs initiatives.

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Voice over IP using SIP Initiative

Voice over IP can provide a cost-effective alternative to traditional analog telephone systems and PBXes. As businesses build out their IP networks, VoIP provides a way to leverage existing investment in networks. By adding IP telephony to a network, a business can bring voice applications to end users, not only at headquarters, but also to branch offices, telecommuters, and mobile users. These diverse environments create a need for many VoIP components, including telephones, "soft" phones, IP PBXs, PSTN gateways and services, ACDs, and voice mail systems---all in a multi-vendor environment. The VoIP focus area will show interoperability of SIP-based VoIP products, with an emphasis on creating secure real-world, economical, and reliable replacements for traditional telephony equipment.

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